Crock Pot Baked Potatoes

Easter is over, and that means one thing: leftovers. So many leftovers. I had almost an entire bag of red potatoes sitting unused in my fridge, and absolutely nothing left in my grocery budget. That leaves one of my favorite {and cheapest} dishes on the menu...baked potatoes!

I have a special love of baked potatoes. When I was really young, money was tight around my house {as it usually is with young families}. Every Sunday, my mom would make baked potatoes and we'd pick up Whoppers from Burger King, back when they were $.99 each. We had that every Sunday after church for years, and with the exception of a terrible case of food poisoning from a Whopper about 5 years ago, it remains one of my favorite meals.

I hope you enjoy these and make some of your own baked potato memories!


Ingredients:

• Potatoes
• Butter
• Salt and pepper
• Tinfoil
• Minced garlic {optional}

Directions:

Rinse potatoes well and remove any large "eyes" with a knife. Rip off pieces of tinfoil that can wrap around each potato. Poke each potato with a fork several times.

Melt butter and spoon some onto each potato.

Add some minced garlic, salt and pepper to each potato.

Seal each potato in the tinfoil and put inside crock pot. Cook on low anywhere from 5-9 hours, depending on how many potatoes you're making. The more potatoes, the longer it takes to cook.

Once potato is soft to the touch, remove carefully from the crock pot, unwrap, cut and add toppings. Serve and enjoy!

Love and potato memories,

 

Easy Roast Beef Sandwiches

You guys, I just don't have the time anymore. As I write this, Judah is bringing me the tinfoil. The tinfoil. From the tinfoil drawer. Oh, wait. Now he's carrying something around...a laundry basket. That's full of clean clothes. The kid is freakishly strong. Now, imagine this, 24/7. Dinner planning and/or making is a thing of the past. Unless it's quick.

I have another recipe for these made with an actual roast, and it's incredible (and actually pretty easy, too).  I highly recommend it. But with Memorial Day around the corner and Tim's 30th birthday party just a few weeks away, I have to keep the grocery budget down. A roast at Walmart runs around $11 for a small one. So instead, I bought half a pound of roast beef at the deli for $2. This recipe makes about 4 sandwiches given the amount of roast beef. I'm not mathematician, but that just makes good sense.


Ingredients:

• Sandwich hoagie rolls
• Provolone cheese slices
• Seasoning salt
• Pepper
• Roast beef from the deli (1/2 pound makes 4 sandwiches)
• 1 can beef broth
• 1 can french onion soup

Directions:

These are the kinds of hoagie rolls you should buy. I love these from Walmart. Cut the loaves in half.

Place 4 of the halves on the baking sheet. Top with roast beef. The roast beef I bought comes in large slices, so I tore them up by hand.

Top with some seasoning salt and fresh pepper.

Cover with provolone slices.

Top with the other bread halves. Place in broiler for 5-7 minutes or in the oven at 350° for about 15 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.

Here's what I'm serving it with -- loaded hashbrown casserole. So good. Here's the recipe.

Here's what you'll need for the au jus. I also know a few people who only use beef broth, but I've found mixing it with the french onion soup makes a huge difference. Either way.

Mix both cans together and microwave until warm. That's it. Seriously.

Once the cheese is warm and bubbly, remove from the oven, cut in half, and serve with the warm au jus. It's just that easy, folks. Go forth and eat.

Love and roast beef,

 

Pizza Pasta Salad

So as you guys already know, I'm not a big proponent of summer in the south. I was made for mild weather, so the 100% humidity and heat closing in on 100° isn't really my thing. If you see me outside during the summer and I am not floating in a pool, hydrate me. Quickly.

Anyway, I have a group of friends that are summer fanatics. They live for it, God love 'em. But apparently, what they love most is the simplicity of it all. Their days are spent lounging at the pool with their kids, and meals are whatever.

So while I am not adopting the obsession with summer, I will hold on dearly to the idea that summer meals can be simple. One of my mom role models, Christie, made a version of this at our weekly Bible study. Killer meal. Takes about 10 minutes, and is dirt cheap. Happy summer to us!

Ingredients:

• 8 oz. block of mozzarella cheese
• 1 pack pepperoni
• Italian seasoning
• 19 oz. pack of cheese tortellini
• 1/4 cup Italian dressing
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette
• Shaved parmesan
• Pepper
• Cherry tomatoes (optional)
• Olives (optional)

Directions:

This is the tortellini that I used. Good ole Walmart. You can also use plain pasta if that's all you have. Cook according to instructions. For me, that just meant boiling it until soft.

Cube the mozzarella and slice up the pepperoni.

Toss the mozzarella in a large bowl.

Add the pepperoni.

Toss in the tortellini. Preferably, this would not only be cooked, but cooled so it doesn't melt the cheese. If you're adding olives or cherry tomatoes, now is the time to do it. Both of those are choking hazards in my household, so we're staying away from that.

Add the seasonings and dressings, stirring well.

Top with shaved parmesan and serve cold.

Even though tortellini is normally heavy, this meal is surprisingly light and fresh. It won't leave you feeling overly-full and gross. Perfect for summertime when I am, coincidentally, already feeling gross.

Love and summer (if I have to),

 

Grilled Mozzarella Sandwich

Today has been a sequence of good things. I woke up. Naturally. This never happens. Then, I convinced myself to exercise. Once again...a rare occurrence. Afterwards, I was all full of endorphins and decided to try a new recipe.

I love grilled cheese.

Tim has a slight obsession with marinara sauce, and dipping things in it. We go through about 3 cans of it every week, regardless of whether or not we have an Italian dish that requires it.

Have you ever been to BJ's Pizza? West-coasters, you know what I'm talking about. East-coasters, if you don't know what I'm referring to, I am so, so sorry. I admit that I took one bite of this before packing it for Tim's lunch, and the finished product tastes like a BJ's pizza.

It's a cheesy-gooey (yet crispy) mess-of-a-dish. When I pulled it apart, the cheese stayed in tact for well over 2 ft. It's that cheesy!

This is also easily pack-able for a quick lunch. And it's the perfect comfort food for this cool, fall day.

Ingredients (1 sandwich)

• 2 slices sourdough bread
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1/4 cup milk
• Italian seasoning
• Salt/pepper
• 1/3 cup mozzarella cheese, or 2 slices mozzarella cheese
• Marinara sauce

Directions:

Combine the egg, milk, Italian seasoning, and a dash of salt and pepper. Whisk together.

Pour the olive oil in a pan over medium heat.

Add the butter and wait until melted.

Dip one slice of bread in the egg mixture.

 Place in the pan, keeping it on medium heat.

Top with mozzarella cheese.

Dip the second piece of bread in the egg mixture and place on top. Cook each side for about 2 minutes, being careful not to burn it.

Serve with marinara sauce.

Love and warm, fall recipes,

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